1. Field Of The Invention
The present invention relates to a method and system for treating textiles with a non-durable, sacrificial soil repellent or soil release material before being placed into service and a sequence of solvent treatments containing additives after textiles are soiled so as to remove complex contaminants therefrom, as well as to recondition such textiles for subsequent reuse. Particularly, the present invention includes treating contaminated textiles with a sequence of nonpolar and polar solvents containing additives for purposes of cleaning and reconditioning such textiles. Additives are required to enhance cleaning properties of the solvents for the removal of contaminants having various solubility characteristics. Additives may also be used to impart protective or other desirable characteristics to the textiles.
2. Description Of Related Art
Textiles are often exposed to and soiled by, either intentionally or unintentionally, a variety of contaminants and undesirable materials. For purpose of example, and not limitation, four categories of contaminants are generally recognized: (1) contaminants that are soluble in nonpolar solvents (e.g., perchloroethylene ("PERC" or "PCE") , other chlorinated solvents, or petroleum); (2) contaminants that are soluble in a polar solvent (e.g., water); (3) resistant contaminants that are insoluble in conventional nonpolar and polar solvents; and (4) completely insoluble contaminants.
It is typically desirable, if not required, to remove contaminants from the soiled textiles. A variety of methods and devices are known for cleaning textiles; these known methods generally use a single solvent to remove the contaminant from the textile. One such single solvent method is a commercial washing process, which uses water and one or more detergents. Although generally effective for the removal of common soils, such as perspiration and food stains, commercial washing processes often are not capable of removing resistant nonpolar contaminants such as paints, undercoatings, sealants, dyes and many chemical treatments without causing damage and premature failure of the textiles By contrast, dry cleaning processes using a single solvent and one or more selected additives may be safe to the fabric but only partially effective or ineffective in removing polar soluble and resistant nonpolar contaminants. These conventional dry cleaning processes, while more effective on resistant paint and coatings than polar solvents, do not achieve satisfactory results without labor intensive manual application (spotting) of certain strong solvents which may cause damage if improperly applied Consequently, the useful life of the textile is shortened significantly.
Limitations using any one of the conventional cleaning methods therefore arise when the textile to be cleaned is soiled with a complex combination of contaminants. For example, uniforms and clothing worn in industrial settings are often contaminated with unique liquid and particulate materials, as well as common soils, such as perspiration and food stains. Such complex contamination particularly occurs in industrial environments where resistant coatings or chemical treatments are being applied to an object surface, e.g., painting, etching and over-coating processes. Carpeting, upholstery and fabrics that are present in such environments likewise may become soiled or contaminated if not properly covered. Protective covers used in the application processes also may become contaminated. Therefore, the protective tarps, drop cloths and sheets used to cover protected surfaces and the garments worn during the application process typically become soiled by exposure to the liquid and particulate materials and therefore need cleaning for continued use.
Because any one of the conventional single solvent cleaning methods are not capable of removing a variety of contamination categories, textiles soiled with complex contamination generally cannot be cleaned satisfactorily without risk of damage to the textile. Neither can any of the conventional single solvent cleaning methods be combined into a singular process because of incompatibility between known solvents and additives and the resultant solvent cross contamination The only other known alternative for removing such complex contamination is specialized manual removal prior to subjection to a conventional cleaning process, which is often impractical, uneconomical and potentially harmful to the textile. Residual contamination therefore accumulates after repeated use, such that the textile loses its original properties and becomes unsightly and if a garment, uncomfortable. Residual contamination due to incomplete cleaning also can interfere with certain industrial applications. It therefore becomes necessary to discard such contaminated textiles far before their expected service life, which results in increased costs.
In addition to removing contaminants, it is often desirable to recondition textiles to maintain or replace, to the extent possible, the original characteristics of the textile with respect to comfort, appearance, hygiene, and compatibility with the intended use. It further is desirable to treat textiles with repellent-type additives capable of preventing the penetration of and facilitating the removal of subsequent contamination. Conventional single solvent cleaning methods are not capable of achieving these goals.
Satisfactory removal of complex contamination from textiles requires a specialized method of treatment. Lacking the proper sequence of solvents and appropriate additives, conventional cleaning techniques are inadequate and may damage, alter, or altogether remove the desirable appearance and wear characteristics of the textile. Conventional single solvent cleaning methods generally are not capable of removing complex contamination. As such, there remains a need for a more effective method and system for treating textiles soiled with complex contamination.